Straight-Ticket Voting

More people are voting and voter-turnout was at an all-time high for the 2008 Presidential election. Most would agree that higher voter turnout is a good thing and good news. Some however, would disagree with me that straight-ticket voting in Texas should be abolished as it has been in many other states.

Today's Austin American Statesman discusses a bill by Sen. Wentworth of San Antonio to try again at getting rid of the straight-ticket option in Texas.

But in the legislative session starting Jan. 13, Republican state Sen. Jeff Wentworth of San Antonio plans a second run at deleting the straight-ticket option from Texas ballots. His repeal proposal didn't advance in 2007 .

"Both political parties need to stop being quite so partisan," Wentworth said.

He said that if a voter wants to favor every Republican or Democrat running, "that's fine with me; I'm not trying to tell them how to vote. I'm just saying they ought to be more informed by seeing the name. "

Nationally, 16 states offer the straight-ticket option, which has been repealed in five states since 1994 , though voters may still favor a single party's candidates by voting one by one. ... Wentworth said his proposal "has nothing to do with trying to give an advantage to either political party. It's an effort to bring us into the mainstream of the 34 other states that don't allow it."

Although the major parties seem to like the ability to vote straight-ticket in an election year like 2004 or 2008 it hurts well qualified local candidates. But then I guess those informed voters on the local races may not vote straight-ticket regardless. We'll see how this issue shakes out but at first blush I'm with Sen. Whentworth on this issue.